Ignition system



F. CONRAD.

IGNITION SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.26,1910.

'1 ,3 5 2,4 31. Patented sem. 14, 192s WITNESSES: INVENTUR WBY UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

. ELECTRIC AND MANUFACTURING COMPANY,

A CORPORATION F PENNSYLVANIA.

IGNITION SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 14, 1920 Application filed September 26, 1910. Serial No. 583,857.

' To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, FRANK CONRAD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsbur h`, in the county of Allegheny and State ofjennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Ignition Systems, of which the following is a `Specification.

My invention relates to electrical ignition systems and particularly to such systems as are employed-for igniting the chargeso'f eX-- plosion engines or for similar purposes.

The object of my invention is to provide a system of the character indicated which shall 'be unusually 4effective in operation, and

which will permit of the employment of any convenient source of energy', which source may also supply current vfor other purpose as for lighting, etc.

Figure 1` voit' the accompanying drawing a system that embodies `my invention, and ig. 2, is a similar view of a modied form of. the system of ,'Ihe system comprises a spark plug having insulated and separated terminal members 2 and 3 that are respectively connected to the terminals of any suitable source of current,

such asa battery 1, impedance coils 4 and' being respectively included in the connec- A tions between the terminals and the source.

The spark plug is shown with its lower end threaded, so that it maybe screwed into the cylinder of an engine with the terminals 2 and 3 projectingI thereinto, but it will be Aunderstood that the terminals 2 and 3 may,

if desired, constitute parts of any other device than the spark plug of 'an explosion engine.. 'For the sake of simplicity, the impedance coils 4.and 5 are shown as wound upon a .common core 6, though, if desired, they may be separate and independent devlces.

The source 1 primarily supplies Ycurrent to the primary winding 8 of a transformer or induction coil 9 having a secondary wind- Y ing 10, an interrupting device 11 and two inpedance coils 12 and 13, respectively, being included in circuit with the primary wmdmg 8. The interrupting device 1l convemently y comprises a stationary terminal member 14 and a resilient arm 15, that is normally maintained in engagement with the'terminal 14, and' is operated into and out of engage# ment therewith, by means of a cam or segmental disk 16, that is actuated by some movable part of the engine or other machine in connection with which the system is employed. A condenser 17 is connected in parallel with the interrupting device 11 and the primary winding 8.

In shunt tothe secondary winding 10 is an auxiliary spark device 18 having ermanently separated, but adjustable, terminal members 19, and, in series with, and upon opposite sides of, the said winding, are condensers 20 and 21, respectively, the terminals of the secondary .circuit being connected to the terminals'2 and-3 of the spark plug.

In the operationof the system, current is supplied from the source l to the primary winding 8 of the transformer or induction coil 9 by way-of a circuit comprising the parts bearing 14, 15, l2 and 6, this circuit being closed when the camor disk 16 occupies shown. Although the spark plug is thenincluded in circuit with the source, no current is supplied thereto,`because the terminals 2 and 3 thereofare separated and the potential` of the source is insulicient to overcome the reslstance of the gap between them. The condensers 20 and 21 also prevent current from being supplied from the battery tothe.

latory electromotive force of ver high volt-.-

age and frequency in the secon ary circuit, which electromotive force is sulicient to overcome the high resistance of the gap between the terminals of the spark plu and to cause .a discharge between them. 'Fhe circuit in which the oscillationsJ occur comprises the parts bearingl reference numerals 18, 20, 2,

` 3 and 21, which, obviously, is of very low impedance in order that the oscillatory electromotive force ma not be/ greatly resisted origh frequency oscillations impeded. The

are prevented from traversing the battery 1 by the impedance coils 4` and v5, and` from traversing other parts of the primarycircuit by the. impedance coils 12 and 13.

After the oscillatory electromotive foroehas reference numerals 1, 5, 13, 8,

the position so 10, which causes a` discharge becaused a discharge across the gap between the terminal members 2 and 3, current from the battery or source 1, and a discharge of the energy stored in the impedance devices 5, 6, 12 and 13 follow the oscillatory discharge and produce a very hot arc of considerable volume. Thus, the high-frequency discharge insures breaking down the resistance between the terminal members Q and i and, since current directly from the source follows the discharge, a hot arc between the terminals is also insured, so that the system provides a very reliable and eiiicient ignition means for use with explosion engines and similar apparatus.

In Fig. 2, the circuits of the system are so arranged as to' dispense with the impedance coils 12 and 13, the coils 4 and 5 serving not only to prevent the high-frequency electromotive force from traversing the battery or source, but also from traversing the circuit of the primary winding of the transformer 9.

I claim as my invention:

1. An ignition system comprising a source of current, a primary circuit connected to the source and including an interrupter, a secondary circuit inductively related to the primary circuit, a spark device having permanently separated terminal members in shunt to the secondary circuit, and a spark plug connected between the terminals of both the source and the secondary circuit.

2. An ignition system comprising a source of current, a primary winding connected to the source, an interrupter in series with the primary winding, a secondary winding inductively related' to the primary winding, a spark device having permanently separated terminal members in shunt to the secondary winding, and a spark plug connected between the terminals of both the source and the secondary winding.

3. An ignition system comprising a source of current, a primary circuit connected to the source and including an interrupter, a

secondary circuit inductively related to the primary circuit and including a permanently open gap, a spark plug connected between the terminals of both the source and the secondary circuit, and condensers in the connections between the spark plug and the secondary circuit.

4. An ignition system comprisinga source of current, a primary circuit connected to the source and including an interrupter, a secondary circuit inductively related vto the primary circuit and including a permanently open gap, a spark plug connected between the terminals of both the source and the secondary circuit, impedance devices interposed in the connections between the source and the spark plug, and condensers in the connections between the jspaik plug and the secondary circuit.

5. An ignition system comprising a source of current, a device having inductively related primary and secondary windings, an interrupter in series with the primary winding, a condenser in shunt to the primary winding and the interrupter, an auxiliary spark device in shunt to the secondary winding, impedance coils interposed between both the source and the primary winding and the secondary winding and the auxiliary spark device, nected between the terminals of both the source and the secondary winding.

6. An ignition system comprising a source of current, a device having inductively related primary andsecondary windings, an interrupter in series with the primary winding, a condenser in shunt to the primary winding and the interrupter, an auxiliary spark device in shunt to the secondary winding, impedance coils interposed between both the source and the primary winding and the secondary winding andthe auxiliary spark device, a spark plug connected between the terminals of bothfthe source and secondary winding, and impedance devices interposed in the connections between the spark plug and the source.

Ina testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 23rd day of Sept.,

FRANK CONRAD. Witnesses A. W. COPLEY, B. B. HINEs.

and a spark plug con-A 

